Context catchup

Restore context after /clear - summarize recent work and project state.

Purpose

After clearing context with /clear, use this command to quickly rebuild understanding of:

• What was recently modified
• Current project state
• Outstanding TODOs and issues
• Where to resume work

Instructions

Step 1: Git history analysis

# Recent commits (last 10)
git log --oneline -10

# Files modified in last 5 commits
git diff --stat HEAD~5 2>/dev/null || git diff --stat $(git rev-list --max-parents=0 HEAD)

# Current branch and status
git branch --show-current
git status --short

Step 2: Recent changes summary

# What changed today
git log --oneline --since="midnight" --author="$(git config user.name)" 2>/dev/null

# Uncommitted work
git diff --name-only
git diff --cached --name-only

Step 3: TODO/FIXME scan

# Find outstanding work markers in recently modified files
git diff --name-only HEAD~5 2>/dev/null | head -20 | xargs grep -n "TODO\|FIXME\|XXX\|HACK" 2>/dev/null | head -30

Step 4: Project state check

# Check for common state indicators
[ -f "package.json" ] && echo "📦 Node project: $(jq -r '.name // "unnamed"' package.json)"
[ -f "Cargo.toml" ] && echo "🦀 Rust project: $(grep '^name' Cargo.toml | head -1)"
[ -f "pyproject.toml" ] && echo "🐍 Python project"
[ -f "go.mod" ] && echo "🐹 Go project: $(head -1 go.mod | cut -d' ' -f2)"

# Active branch purpose (from branch name)
BRANCH=$(git branch --show-current)
echo "🌿 Branch: $BRANCH"

Output format

Provide a structured summary:

📍 Context restored

Project: [name from package.json/Cargo.toml/etc] Branch: [current branch] Last Activity: [time of last commit]

🔄 Recent work (last 5 commits)

1. [commit message 1] - [files affected]
2. [commit message 2] - [files affected] ...

📝 Uncommitted changes

• [list of modified files with brief description of changes]

⚠️ Outstanding TODOs

• [file:line] TODO: [description]
• [file:line] FIXME: [description]

🎯 Suggested next steps

Based on recent activity:

1. [Most likely next action based on patterns]
2. [Alternative focus area]

Usage examples

After a long break:

/catchup

→ Full context restoration

Quick status check:

/catchup --brief

→ Just commits and uncommitted changes

Focus on specific area:

/catchup auth

→ Filter to auth-related changes

Pro tips

1. Document before /clear: Write a brief note in a commit message or CLAUDE.md before clearing context
2. Use with Memory Bank: Combine with .claude/memory/ files for persistent state
3. Branch naming: Use descriptive branch names (e.g., feat/user-auth) to aid context restoration

$ARGUMENTS